Conservative MPs have called on the government to use Britain’s national security laws to investigate the Barclay family’s attempt to regain control of the Telegraph newspaper group with funding from Abu Dhabi.
Five Tory MPs, including Edward Leigh and John Hayes, have written to Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden, Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch and Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer questioning the use of foreign sovereign wealth to buy Britain’s national newspaper.
The Daily Telegraph has traditionally been the newspaper most closely associated with the Conservative party – Boris Johnson wrote a weekly column for the broadsheet before becoming prime minister – which has raised concerns among Tory MPs about its future ownership.
The media group was put into administration by Lloyds Banking Group earlier this year due to unpaid debts and has since been put up for auction by the bank.
However, the Barclay family has in recent days offered to repay all of the £1.1 billion of outstanding debt. This would be funded by debt provided by a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family and RedBird IMI, an investment vehicle led by former CNN chief Jeff Zucker and part-funded by Abu Dhabi-based International Media Investments.
As part of the deal, Redbird IMI is understood to have an option to convert the debt into shares in the group, which would give the fund control of the British newspaper.
The MPs said in the letter that they were concerned that investment vehicles with links to the Emirati royal family “could soon gain control or significant influence over two of the UK’s most important media publications, The Telegraph and The Spectator”.
They argue that there is “a strong case for close scrutiny by the Government under both the Enterprise Act 2002 and the National Security & Investment Act 2021” – particularly if the offer includes taking the publications as security for the loan, “an amount which, by any reasonable measure, the publications’ revenues will not be able to support”.
The letter marks the first time that Tory MPs have specifically questioned the Barclay family’s links to Abu Dhabi, rather than just warning of foreign influence in the takeover of the newspaper group.
“The transfer of significant influence over a quality national newspaper to a foreign ruler should raise concerns at any time, but given the current geopolitical context, such a deal must be investigated,” the MPs said in the letter.
“This clearly represents a potential threat to press freedom in this country and, given the influential position of these publications, a risk that issues relating to national security will not be accurately reported.” The letter was also signed by Conservative peer Baroness Margaret Eaton.
The MPs’ concerns may have little effect on Lloyds’ decision on the paper’s future, as the family has the legal right to repay the debt.
A court hearing next week to wind up a holding company that sits above the group – effectively the final part of the administration – is expected to be adjourned to give the family more time to structure the deal with Lloyds.
The family’s backers still need to carry out due diligence and the bank needs to be assured of funding, but if the family can find the money to repay the debt in full, the auction of the newspaper will be halted.
The MPs argue that the Barclay family’s deal could be investigated through a public interest intervention notice.
But the Barclay family said in a statement that “there is no precedent and no basis for a [public interest intervention notice] to be issued in relation to a debt transaction and we are very confident that the family’s proposal would not trigger any regulatory review of the ownership of the media assets”.